Tent-closing device



(No Model.)

H. THOMAS.

TENT CLOSING DEVICE.

No. 396,842. Patented Jan. 29, 1.889.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OEEicE.

HENRY THOMAS, OF FORT OMAHA, NEBRASKA.

TENT-CLOSING DEVICE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 396,842, dated January 29, v1889.

Application filed December 21, 1888. Serial No. 294,257. (No model.)

To all whom it 'fn/ay concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY THoMAs, of Fort Omaha, in the county of Douglas and State of Nebraska, have invented a new and Improved rlentClosing Device, of which the following' is a full, clear, and exact description.

The object ot my improvement is to pro duce a device for closing the entrance-opening in the wall ot' a tent readily and quickly and in suoli manner that the tying ot cords becomes unnecessary. I accomplish this object by providing the wall of the tent in which is the entrance-opening with a flexible curtain secured at its top above the opening, and provided at intervals along its length with clips which embrace at each' end a guidepiece combined with each perpendicular edge ort' the opening in the tent-wall.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming apart of this specification, in which similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure 1 is a view of the inside of one of the walls of a tent provided with my improved closing device, showing the entrance to the tent completely closed. Fig` 2 is a central vertical section taken through the closing device when in the position shown in Fig'. l. Fig. 3 is a section taken on the same plane as Fig. 2 when the closing device is folded so as to open the entrance to the tent, being` so1newhat enlarged. Fig. 4 is a cross-section taken on the plane ot the line a' ne, Fig. 2, enlarged and Fig. 5 is an isometric view of one ot the with an opening, B, in the wall O, to permit ot access to the interior of the tent. This opening B is made by removing a section of the material of the wall C of any desired width and height, leaving the side edges of the opening parallel and perpendicular to the ground. The top edge may be at right angles to the side edges, as shown. The edges oit the open ings are then turned over upon themselves a sufficient distance, so that when the turned over portion is sewed to the main portion a hem will be left su fliciently large to receive a guide-rope. This construction is best shown in Fig. 4, where D is the main portion of the wall, F. the turned-over portion, and F the rope.

At the top ot the opening l, on the inside ot' the te11t\vall, the part G of the curtain H, which is of fiexible material, is secured. This curtain is suiiiciently long and wide to entirely cover the opening' B when hanging loosely, and is disposed, as shown, so as to be on the outside of the tent-wall. To this curtain, at intervals, are attached, by sewing or otherwise, the parts I ot' the sliding clips J.

To combine the curtain and opening to the tent for use, the sliding clips J are manipulated so that their enlarged circular portions K K will embrace each the rope of one of the edges of the opening B, the clips and opening made in the wall ol' the tent being formed to accommodate one another. The parts L of the clips will then extend over the main portion of the wall of the tent and serve to retain the clips in place upon the guide-ropes F. Then the curtain and tent are thus combined, it is obvious that the clips .I may be slid upward upon the guide-ropes F of the tent, and will carry with them the curtain, which will form into folds, as shown in Fig. 3.' To retain the curtain in this position, a cord or loop, M, may be attached to the lowest clip and brought up and hung upon the hook Y, secured to the wall of the tent. Then the curtain is thus secured upon the hook N, the Haps of the tent-wall below the lowest clip will be free to be moved to permit ingress or egress to and from the tent.

Then the curtain is wanted to entirely close the opening to the tent, the loop M removed from the hook N and the clips J allowed to run down the guide-ropes F, carrying with them the curtain. To retain the curtain in its closed position, the loop M, placed on the lowest clip, will be drawn over the tent-peg P on the inside.

IOO

lf desired, the curtain may be raised to uncover but a portion of the tent-opening, and to secure the curtain so as to maintain such opening a loop, as M is provided at any desired point on the curtain, and may be brought over the hool; N.

Thile the curtain is being raised, to prevent the liaps of the Wall of the tent from being raised with it, each flap lnay be secured to the tent-peg P by means of the loop Q, attached thereto.

The tent-Wall in which the opening to the tent is made is usually ot' canvas, and the curtain will also be formed, preferably, of the same material; but I do not coniine myself to a canvas curtain or tent, as other flexible material might be used in constructing either. Neither doI mean to confine myself to the combination of .a lieXible curtain with a iieXible tentwall, as my device might be used to cover the opening in a rigid' wall; but when used with a rigid wall of course the manner of eombiningthe guide-pieces with the edges of the opening will be different, if guide-pieces are used, Which Will not always be the case, as the edges themselves may serve as guides when they are rigid.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is#

l. In combination with a tent-Wall having an opening formed therein, a guide-piece secured to each of the perpendicular edges of said opening, and a 'flexible curtain secured at its upper end above said opening, and provided at intervals with clips embracing at each end the guide-pieces at the edges of the opening, substantially as specied.

2. In combination with a flexible tent-wall having an opening formed therein, a flexible curtain secured at its upper end so as to cover said opening, a guide-rope combined with each perpendicular edge of the opening, and clips combined with said curtain at intervals, said guide-ropes serving as guides for said clips, and a loop, M, placed upon one of the clips, and a hook, N, placed upon the tent-Wall above the opening, substantially as specified.

In combination, a clip, J, and a tent-curtain, H, said clip being secured to said curtain by its part I, and embracing a guide-rope in the opening of the tent-Wall by its part K and overlapping the tent-Wall by its part L, substantially as specied.

4. In combination with a flexible tent-Wall having an opening formed therein, a guiderope secured in a hem formed in the edges or" the opening of said tent-Wall, and a flexible curtain secured at its upper end above said opening, and provided at intervals with clips embracing at each end the guide-rope at the edges of the tent-opening, substantially as specified.

HENRY THOMAS.

IVitnesses ALBERT SAUER, FRANK KETSHMARK. 

